
1:19'H) 



History and Description 



-OF"- 



THE LURAY CAYE, 

(ILLUSTRATED.) 

INCLUDING EXPLANATIONS OF THE MANNER OF ITS 

FORMATION, ITS PECULIAR GROWTHS, ITS 

GEOLOGY, CHEMISTRY, &c. ; ALSO A 

MAP. 

THE WHOLE SO ARRANGED AS TO SERVE AS A GUIDE. 



-BY- 



S. Z, ffiMMEN, R.. M, 



THIRD EDITION. 



J. W. BORST & Co., Pdblishers 
BALTIMORE, 

1882. 






(Copyright Secured June, i8So. 



THE LURAY CAVE. 




ITS HISTORY AND SURROUNDINGS. 



HE Great Valley of Virginia lies between 
two elevated ranges — the Blue Ridge on the south- 
east rising to heights of from 2,000 to 4,000 feet 
above tide-level, and the North Mountain range on the 
north-west almost equally high. It is not a continu- 
ous plain like some of the western prairies. On the 
contrary it is of varied surface, a land of hill and 
dale, well-watered, fertile, and abounding in every 
variety of mineral and agricultural wealth. Nor 
is it a single valley throughout. From a few miles south-west of 
Winchester to a point nearly opposite Harrisonburg it is divided into 
two subordinate valleys by the Massanutton Mountain — a long belt 
of ridges of silurian and devonian rocks which withstood the denud- 
ing agencies that cleared away on either side so many hundreds of 
square miles of strata. Both Valleys are proverbial for their beauty and 
famous for important historical events of which each has been the 
scene, but our present concern is with the eastern and narrower 
one. the Luray Valley. This constitutes Page County, of which 
Luray is the country seat. For the lover of the beautiful in nature 
it is endowed with innumerable charms. Hemmed in on every side 
with a rim of blue mountains, it is traversed in its western part by the 
South Branch of the Shenandoah, a beautiful river known in many a 
storv of battle and guerilla adventure during the civil war. It was 
upon its banks at Front Royal, near its junction mth the North Branch, 
that the first battle of Jackson's celebrated Valley campaign was fought. 
The Hawksbill, a winding and picturesque stream, flows through the 



4 THE LURAY CAVE. 

centre of the valley, alternating along its upper course with wild 
mountain cascades and bits of bosky dell, until at length, after water- 
ing miles of fertile meadow, it passes beneath the rustic bridge at 
Luray and loses itself in the Shenandoah. Nor is the village ol 
Luray unknown to fame. It was through its streets that Stonewall 
Jackson passed in making his flank movement upon Banks 
at Strasburg in the spring of 1862. By this way, too, marched Gen. 
Shields a little later to intercept the wily Confederate in his retreat 
before Fremont. After the affair at Port Republic, Luray lay in the 
line of the Federal general's retreat. Again in July, 1863, Lee's 
army returning from Gettysburg to Eastern Virginia, and finding the 
lower passes of the Blue Ridge held by Meade's troops, came this 
far up the Valley to gain Thornton's Gap, and crossing here, once 
more confronted its old adversary. Then, as now, the village was 
famous for its pretty girls and abundant rations, to both of which 
soldiers are ever devoted, and it became in consequence the scene of 
many exploits of the partisan soldiery of Harry Gilmor, White, 
McNeil, and Mosby — gay fellows who knowing well the charms of 
the place were loth to yield possession. 

About a mile west of Luray on the Newmarket pike is a conical 
hill known as Cave Hill from the existence of a cave near its summit. 
Along its sides and about its base are standing ponds, and sink-holes 
marked with a growth of briar and weeds, known to vagrant boys 
as the favorite haunts of rabbits. Their more important significance 
was not understood, however, until there appeared in the county a 
photographer, Mr. B. P. Stebbins, of Easton, Md., who induced 
several of the villagers to join him in the search for a cave which, 
from surface indications, he felt sure must exist in the neighborhood. 
His companions in this memorable cave hunt were Messrs. A. J. and 
Wm. B. Campbell. Together they went prospecting about the coun- 
try, digging here and there at promising localities but without suc- 
cess, until, being nick-named "cave-hunters," they became the objects 
of good-natured ridicule from their fellow townsmen who charged 
them with mistaking rabbits' hiding places for mares' nests, and 
jumping rabbits for sprightly young colts. 

At length on the 13th of August, 1878 a depression on the hill-side 
was examined which proved to be the entrance to the long-sought 
cave. It was about forty feet in diameter by ten in depth, filled with 
loose stones and brush, and grown up with weeds. Removing these 
obstructions with considerable labor they found an opening from 



THE LURAY CAVE. 5 

which a current of air was escaping. The opening was further 
widened and Mr. A. J. Campbell was lowered by means of a rope, 
and reaching bottom with candle in hand peered about him in the 
darkness. He found himself m a narrow rift about fifteen feet long by 

five wide, with no apparent 
^( • outlet. Closer examination 

disclosed a hole through 
which with some difficulty he 
passed into a large open space 
now known as Entrance Hall 
, — and became the discoverer 
:of the cave. Having aban- 
oned the rope which connect- 
ed him with his companions, 
he surveyed for some time 
with rapt interest the strange 
scene presented to his eyes, 
until — the rest of the party 
becoming alarmed at his ab- 
sence — his nephew Wm. B. 
Campbell came in search of 
him. Together they returned 
to the upper world, and the 
exploration ceased for the 
time. The importance of 
their discovery was appre- 
ciated, and at night the party 
returned with candles and 
explored Stebbins' Avenue, 
Entrance Hall and Entrance 
Avenue as far as Muddy 
Lake, since drained and re- 
placed by a dry, cement walk. 
The Lake — then a considerable body of water — stopped them, and of 
the largest and grandest part of the cave they remained in ignorance, 
until, on a venture, they had purchased the land under which it lay. 
Since its opening the cave has been visited by many thousands* of 
persons representing all parts of the world, many of them scientists and 




The Dragon of Luray. 



*In the third year after it was opened the number of visitors exceeded 12,000. 



6 THE LURAY CAVE. 

foreign tourists acquainted with the caves of this and other countries. 
The general verdict is that the Luray Cave excels all others in the 
combined extent, variety, scientific interest, and beauty of its calcite 
formations. The Mammoth and Wyandotte caves are indeed larger, 
but their walls are almost bare, Weyer's is admittedly inferior in the 
freshness, variety and beauty of its cave scenery, as well as in extent. 
The recently discovered New Market cave falls far behind in size, 
richness of ornamentation, and ease of access. It lacks also the 
variety and abundance of formations to which the Luray Cave owes 
its preeminence. For the latter it may be claimed that it is the most 
beautiful cave in the world. "Comparing this great natural curiosity 
with others of the same class," says the report of a party sent out 
from the Smithsonian Institution, "it is safe to say that there is proba- 
bly no other cave in the world more completely and profusely decor- 
=ated with stalactitic and stalagmitic ornamentation than that of Luray."* 
Soon after its discovery the tract of land overlying the cave, 
which contained 28^ acres, was sold by order of the county 
court at auction, to close up a bankrupt estate, and Messrs. 
Stebbins, Campbell & Co., became the purchasers. The price paid 
was $17 per acre, or double what the land had brought at a pre- 
vious sale. It was considered by persons not in the secret a bad 
bargain, as the soil is light, consisting of a thin clay strewn with 
fragments of quartz, while the hill-side is disfigured with sink-holes 
and masses of lower silurian limestone projecting in horizontal strata 
from the surface. A few days later, however, the town was electrified 
by the announcement of the discovery of a wonderful cave. The 
commotion was immense, and when the value of the property with 
which they had parted became known, the relatives of the original 
owner instituted suit for its recovery. The decision of the local 
court was in favor of Stebbins, Campbell & Co., but the case was 
carried to the State Court of Appeals, and there, in the spring of 188 1, 



*See Scribner's Monthly, April and Oct., 1880, and "The Century," Jan. 1882. 

"The Century" speaks "of the ornamental formations of crystalline rock, which 
render this cave without a peer in the world, perhaps, for the startling beauty and 
astonishing variety of its interior." 

The Philadelphia Sunday Repubhc asks you to "think over every beautiful and 
pleasant sight your eyes have rested upon ; recall all the weird fancies and 
grotesque dreams your imagination has conjured up, and then visit the Luray 
Cave, and find all these sink into insignificance before the beauties, marvels and 
pectacular effects that will there dawn upon your astonished gaze." 



THE LURAY CAVE. / 

decided in favor of the plaintiffs. The case had scarcely been de- 
cided when the Luray Cave arid Hotel Company, related in 
interest to the Shenandoah Valley Railroad Company, purchased 
the cave for $40,000. Other bodies of land adjoining have since been 
added to the original tract until property exceeding the 
whole area overlying the cave, and several times the extent of the 
original 'cave tract,' now belongs to the same owners. Ample ex- 




The Banks 
OF THE Rhine. 



penditure has been made by its new owners to improve their valuable 
purchase. A handsome cottage of two stories has been built over 
the mouth of the cave, and in the interior cement walks, plank plat- 
forms, stairways, and railings have been provided wherever needed, 
so that at present the visitor can spend hours wandering underground 
without wetting his feet or incurring risk of a fall. The tallow candles 
formerly employed to illuminate the cave were replaced on the 20th 
September, 1881, with thirteen electric lamps operated by a dynamo 



8 THE LURAY CAVE. 

(Thomson-Houston system) at the railway station. This is the first in- 
stance on record in which a cav^ has been lighted by electricity. It is 
supposed to be the first instance of a current traversing so 
great a circuit, its length being nearly seven miles. Additional 
light is fijrnished for out-of-the-way nooks by the use of lamps 
carried m the hand. Guides — among them Mr. A. J. Campbell, 
the first person to enter the cave — are in waiting to attend the 
visitor, and no charge is made for either lights or guides. Carriages 
await the arrival of every train to carry intending explorers to the 
Cave which is distant about one mile from the station.* No change of 
dress is needed, as some suppose, on entering the realm of Stalacta. 
There is little or no dripping water where the visitor will care to go, 
and the walks, as said before, are made' dry and safe by artificial 
means. It may not be amiss to add that the laws of Virginia impose a 
fine of from five to five hundred dollars for defacing or despoiling private 
property, and the guides have posit ve orders to arrest every person 
known to have broken off or carried away specimens. The law has oc- 
casionally been violated and fines have been imposed by the local mag- 
istracy who feel a strong interest in keeping the cave formations intact- 
The Luray Inn, built by the Luray Cave and Hotel Company in 
Queen Anne style, is near the railroad station, and serves either as a 
temporary stopping place for hurried visitors to the cave, or as a re- 
sort for persons wishing a healthy and romantic spot in which to 
spend the summer. The Inn has fifty-four sleeping rooms, all pro- 
vided with gas and electric bells. Hot and cold water baths and other 
comforts or necessaries are liberally supplied. There is a tower 
crowning the Inn from which may be obtained a fine view of the 
glorious scenery of the Hawksbill valley. One sun-set scene from 
this point is worth a trip across the Atlantic. That this is the case may 
be inferred from a letter written by a gentleman spending his summer 
here. In reply to a question as to his resources for enjoyment, he 
thus expressed himself: 

"To lie on a grassy hill-side and watch the sun setting behind the 
Massanutton ; to see the thousand purplish tints that sleep within its 
winding valleys and glens, while the heavens above are glowing with 
splendors of pink, and red, and gold, amber, faintish-blue and green; 



*Round-trip tickets good for the ride to the Cave in the cave hacks, are sold 
at the station. Round-trip tickets, good for carriages, are also sold. 

All railroads sell tickets with coupons attached allowing the traveler to stop 
over at Luray one day. 



THE LURAY CAVE. 



to hear the cries and calls of eventide, the shouts of the workmen 
coming home, and the multitudinous noises of the farm house at the 
close of the day,— these are no small pleasures. There are cherry- 
trees to climb, berries to gather, ferns to collect, a cave to explore, 
fish to catch, and long walks to take in the deep forest, or by the 
river-side, or down some rustic, vine-bordered lane. To sit on the 
farm-house porch and see the corn growing, and listen to the busy 
threshing machines buzzing fitfully far away across the hot fields 
throughout the idle, dreamy day— unhappy the man that cannot find 
a certain charm in these things. They wake a dim echo in our souls 
of the rustic lives of our ancestors. We find in them the pabulum 
of our highest emotions, inspiration for better living, and nobler 
thinking. City life tires, deadens, exhausts. We become one-sided, 
evil, set in bad habits, which the necessities of country life eftectually 
break up. We return to town in the autumn with increased physical, 
mental and moral strength to renew and accomplish the tasks of 
hfe." , 

Luray is a good central point from which the historiographer may 
visit the numerous battlefields of the Valley and Piedmont region of 
Virginia. Within a few miles are Kernstown, Front Royal, Win- 
chester, Strasburg, New Market, Cedar Creek, Cross Keys and Port 
Republic. Charlestown, the scene of John Brown's trial apd execution 
is in easy reach. There are several interesting mounds, built perhaps 
by the famous mound -builders, within two or three miles of Luray. 
For several years representatives of the Smithsonian Institution have 
been engaged in examining them. 

Luray is within easy reach of Raleigh, Capon and Jordan White 
Sulphur Springs, and is on the direct line from northern cities to the 
famous Greenbrier White Sulphur, Old Sweet, Red Sweet, Warm 
Springs, and other prominent Virginia Watering places. 



A CHAPTER OF EXPLANATION. 

Scopulis pendentibus antrum : 
Intus aquae dukes, vivoque sedilia saxo. 

Geologically, the limestone (dolomite) in which the cave is found, 
is to be assigned to the "Canadian" or Middle Period of the Lower 
Silurian, and to the "Quebec," the Middle Epoch of that period — to 
No. IL, b., ol Rogers' series. 



10 



THE LURAY CAVE. 




Empress Column (Giants' Hall). 



THE LURAY CAVE. 



11 



The stratum* of argillacious limestone constituting Cave Mill may 
be considered identical with that in which occurs the famous Natural 
Bridge of Rockbridge County, near Glenwood Station, Shenandoah 
Valley R. R., further up the valley. Such is the opinion of Prof. 
John Campbell, of Washington and Lee University, who has made 
a minute study of this region, and is recognized as the highest living 
authority upon the geology oi the Valley of Virginia. 

Large caves are found only in limestone regions. Those who give 
the subject special study agree that a cave is but an underground 
valley — a ravine roofed with stone — a repetition on a small scale and 
under a stony sky, of the main features of limestone scenery above 
ground. This view is well sustained by the structure of the Luray 
Cave. It is a system of large ravines, of which (i) Entrance and 
Stonewall Avenue, (2) Pluto's Chasm, and (3) Giants' Hall and its 
dependencies, are the dominating lines. It is one thing, however, 
to have subterranean ravines, and quite another to have them richly 
decorated with beautiful formations. The former are common the 
world over ; the latter are rare by reason of the many conditions to 
be fulfilled. The hill in which the cave is situated is the highest in 
the vicinity, and the cave is near its summit. The strata are 
horizontal, compact, homogeneous, and almost water-tight. Had the 
Cave Hill been subject to the rain torrents flowing from higher hills 
and had its strata been inclined, water would have flowed through any 
chance opening too fast to have produced effects other than those 
due to mere erosion. As it is, the water which enters the cave seems 
to exude from the very stone itself, as if it had under pressure travers- 
ed the whole thickness of limestone overhead. 

Caves result from the chemical fact that the carbonates of lime and 
magnesia are soluble in water containing carbonic acid. This acid 
abounds in atmospheric air and is one of the products of the decom- 
position of animal and vegetable matters, so that rain water which 
has percolated throug'n the soil has usually been enriched with it 
from both sources. With carbonic acid, then, as the active agent 
and water as the carrier we are able to account for the disappearance 
of strata however thick, and whether above or below ground. Above 
ground the result is a lowering of the general level, the deposition of 
a residual stratum of clay (a constituent in a finely divided condition, 
of the Valley limestone), and the formation of valleys where special 

*Prof. Campbell considers this sMatum much older than the Trenton strata, a 
well-marked epoch intervening. 



12 



THE LURAY CAVE. 




Cathedral and Hall of Giants. 



THE LURAY CAVE. 13 

causes have favored the disintegration of the stone. "Hard" water 
flows away, and a clay soil is left behind. Below ground, on the 
other hand, the result is a cave — if there be a fissure in the strata 
through which the acidified water may make its descent. In the 
course of time this fissure is worn larger, and the entering water 
dissolves and bears away with it bit by bit the stratum through which 
it passes, flowing out at some lower level with its burden of lime and 
magnesia, but leaving the clay behind to plague the adventurous 
cave-hunter. A cave therefore is a fissure widened by the combined 
action of carbonic acid and water. 

So much for the solution and removal of strata. It remains to 
account for the new formations, which, under the names stalactite, 
stalagmite, drapery, etc., are peculiar to cave scenery. Some caves 
have them ; some have not. They demand certain conditions of 
comparative dryness and ventilation which are seldom realized. The 
chemist knows that water holding lime in solution by virtue of the 
carbonic acid it contains will deposit the lime when the acid escapes. 
It is obvious, moreover, that when water containing dissolved lime 
and magnesia is evaporated by a passing current of air, the solid 
matter will be left behind, and crystals small or large be formed, ac- 
cording as the evaporation is rapid or slow. The formation of a lime- 
stone coating at the bottom of a kettle in which "hard water" has 
been boiled is an analogous phenomenon. 

Formations. — Cave formations when new are white from the pre- 
dominance in their composition of lime and magnesia. In the course of 
time, however, much of the soluble matter of their surface is removed 
by the ever-present carbonic acid and moisture gathered from the 
cave atmosphere, and the residual clay and iron oxide accumulating on 
their exterior give it a darker color. 

The formations at Luray are to be referred to the following types : 

I. Stalactite. — It begins from a drop suspended from the ceiling. 
The carbonic acid escaping and the water evaporating, the drop 
becomes more concentrated at the surface than at the pendent centre, 
and deposits the solid matter it contains as a ring of tiny crystals. 
This ring now becomes the support of the drop, and the process 
continues until a tubeofthediameterof the drop and from one to thirty- 
six inches in length is formed. Before reaching this length, however, 
it begins commonly to fill up, and the water now trickling exteriorly 
deposits its solid matter and enlarges it. Stone cloth, "curtains," 
"swords," ^"draperies," etc., are its varieties. Hanging from the 



14 



THE LURAY CAVE. 



under surface of a jutting ledge, a stalactite receives its supply of 
stone-forming water on one side only and grows only on that side. 
Thus from being a round body it becomes a flat one. Extending 
horizontally as it broadens, it must chance to intersect the line of 
growth of similar adjacent formations, and where they meet there is 
a blending of substance and the semblance of a fold. Stripes of 
various tints of red results from varying proportions of carbonate ot 
iron in the water which trickles down the growing edge. The stalac- 
tite assumes a thousand forms, and one of the chief pleasures of the 
visitor is to study and account for its wonderful vagaries. 




The Frozen Geyser (Pluto's Chasm). 



2. Stalagmite. — Meanwhile a growth has been taking place below 
from the drops which have fallen upon the floor and there evaporated. 
The result is a solid column much larger than its corresponding sta- 
lactite. Stalactite and stalagmite often meet in mid -air to form a 
pillar extending from floor to ceiling. 

3. Helictite. — The Luray Cave produces a new and peculiar forma- 
tion, neither stalactite nor stalagmite, for which is proposed the name 
helictite (Greek helisso, to bend or tK'ist,) to indicate the contorted or 



THE LURAY CAVE. 15 

broken line of growth which it aftects. The hehctite abandons the 
vertical line. It prefers to extend horizontally from one to three 
inches, until it can be free to move in any direction. It then often 
grows upward, seldom downward. 

This eccentric formation is due to a slow crystallization taking place 
on a surface barely moist, from material conveyed to the point of 
growth by a capillary movement. The polar forces concerned in 
crystallization by a happy chance continually getting the better of 
gravitation, it departs from the vertical line to which cave growths 
are usually restricted. 

4. Calcite Crystals aie deposited in Stillwater. They are abundant 
in the cave, forming the sides and bottom of its numerous " springs " 
and lakes, but should be distinguished from others found protruding 
from the blue limestone of the ceiling, the latter having been formed 
therein long before the period of the cave. 

5. Cave Pearls are formed about pebbly nuclei in water agitated 
by falling drops. Botryoids result when adjacent masses of stone are 
besprinkled with fine spray. These grape-Hke bodies are fixed, 
and when old resemble ''vegetable gronths'" but are smaller 
and have a different origin. The latter are found on old 
stalagmites disintegrating in a moist atmosphere. Cascades lie 
between stalactites and stalagmites, being formed when water 
trickles over an inclined plane of broad surface. No gypsum forma- 
tions occur in the Luray Cave. 

Age — It is impossible to estimate correctly the age 
of the cave, or of its formations. The cave is of 
course more recent than the hill in which it is formed — is later than 
the adjacent valleys and streams into which it drains. The rate of 
growth of cave formations varies with a score of circumstances, so 
that no generally applicable rule can be deduced. The writer has 
seen a tumbler whicli after standing five years under the drip of a 
stalactite was encrusted to a depth of one-eighth of 
an inch At this rate of growth, supposing all the conditions to be 
exceptionally favorable, a column one foot in diameter might be 
formed in two hundred and forty years. Under ordinary circumstances 
however, it would perhaps require several thousands some 
reckoners say tens of thousands of years. Others go further. Dr. 
Porter, of Lafayette College, a distinguished scientist, in a recent 
lecture, quotes an eminent brother scientist as saying, concerning the 
Fallen Column, a gigantic formation weighing one hundred and 



16 



THE LURAY CAVE. 




Sentinel and Spectre (Pluto's Chasm). 



THE LURAY CAVE. 17 

seventy tons, that "four thousand years must have passed since its fall, 
and seven millions of years were consumed in its formation." This 
calculation is based upon the probable time which, in his opinion, it 
took to grow the vertical stalactites which have formed upon it as it lies. 
Prof. Collins, of New York city (of the "Jeannette" Polar Expedition), 
who visited the cave and looked at this column, declared all his pre- 
conceived ideas of time stranded. " I am not familiar," said he, 
" with the hypothesis upon which the calculations are based, but 
when the savans assert that it required seven millions of years to 
give this fallen column its present diameter, I feel like ' putting off 
my shoes ' and standing on this sloppy stone, for it certainly must be 
' holy ground.' " 



THE DESCENT. 

" In Xanadu did Kubla Khan 
A stately pleasure-dome decree, 
Where Alph, the sacred river, ran 
Through caverns, measureless to man, 
Down to a sunless sea." 

A house has been built over the entrance ior the convenience of visi- 
tors.* Within the cave are plank and cement walks, bridges, stairways, 
railings, etc., in all those parts at present open to the general visitor, 
so that no special preparation is needed except such as is suggested 
by the mention of the fact that the temperature of the cave atmos- 
phere ranges from 54 to 58 degrees. The thirteen electric lights sus- 
pended at important points relieve the visitor of the trouble of being 
his own torch-bearer. Still, if desired, the guide provides each person 
with a reflector armed with several candles. At the word " Ready !" 
we take our places in single file, and following the guide observe in 
descending the stairway that the thickness of the horizontal stratum 
of blue limestone constituting the roof of the cave is about thirty-five 
feet. A door is opened and we are met by an outward draft of cool 
fresh air. Advancing further we find ourselves in Entrance Hall, 
the vestibule of the realms of Stalacta. Our first emotion at the 
abrupt change from the freedom of outside nature is one of mute 
wonder, until the mind accustoms itself to the monstrous shapes, the 
silence, and the weird influence of this subterranean world. 



* To enter the cave the visitor descends a stairway within the house, precisely 
as if he were going down into a cellar. The Map shows his subsequent course. 



18 



THE LURAY CAVE. 




CftTHEDR'^^ 



ROUND ROOM 



Map of the Cave. 



1. Entrance Hall.— 3. Washington's Column.— 3. Flower Garden.— 4. Theatre.— 
5. Natural Bridge over Muddy Lake.— 6. The Fish Market.— 7. The Crystal Spring.— 
8. Proserpine's Column.— 9. The Spectre.— 10 The Ealcony.— 11. Oberon's Grotto.— 
13. Titania's Veil.— 13. Saracen's Tent and Fallen Column.— U. The Organ and Throne.— 
15. The Tower of Babel.— 16. The Empress Column.— 17. Hall of Eblis.— 18. Henry-Baird 
(or Double) Column.— 19. The Chalcedony Cascade.— 30. Cascade Spring.— 21. The 
Dragon, in Collins' Grotto.— 33. Mermaid or Scaly Column.— 28. The Queen's Scarf.— 
34- The Wet Blanket— 35. Chapman's Lake.— 36. Lake Lee.— 27. Castles on the Rhine and 
Lake Lethe.— 28. The Imperial Spring.— 29 The Skeleton.— 30. The Twin Lakes-— 31. The 
Engine Room.— 33. Dr. Miller's Room.— 33. Hawes' Room.— 34. Specimen Avenue-— 
35. The Leaning Tower-— 36. Proposed Exit Avenue- 



THE LURAY CAVE. 19 

Our feeling is that we have entered a new state of 
being. Queer shapes present themselves at every turn, aping 
grotesquely the things of our past experience. Every object 
suggests some growth of animal or vegetable life, yet every 
resemblance proves illusive. Before us are glittering stalactites 
and fluted columns strong enough to bear a world ; draperies in 
broad folds and a thousand tints ; cascades of snow-white 
stone; and, beyond, a background of pitchy darkness in which 
the imagination locates more than the eye can see. The mind 
" dodges with belief" Fancy is dazed by the incomprehensible 
stimulus it receives from a multitude of novel forms. Around us is a 
silence that speaks. To what does it testify — the infinite inventive- 
ness of chance ? Not so. We see the mechanic spirits of this under- 
world, gnomes and imps, who dart from shadow to shadow, behind 
column and angle, to watch that we do no harm to their marvelous 
handiwork. Awe and reverence possess us. We are in a place, 
where, all for all, nothing has its fellow in the world above, and 
where everything is sacred and inviolable. 

Let us examine objects more closely under the glow of the over- 
hanging electric light. First to attract attention is Washington's 
Column, a fluted, massive stalagmite about twenty feet in diameter 
by thirty in height, reaching from floor to ceiling. Stalactites depend 
on every side. From the centre of the roof one descends as aptly 
as if nature had designed it to support a chandelier. At other points 
we observe, in irregular masses, bunches of minute crystals of silica* 
browned with clay, of a spongy texture, formed ages ago by infiltra- 
tion into the mazy crevices of the limestone. Iheir matrix has been 
dissolved away, and they now attract attention by their close resem- 
blance to the coarser sorts of sponge. 

Three avenues radiate from Entrance Hall. We enter Entrance 
Avenue, and pass on our left a rounded bank of dripstone fringed 
beneath with semblances of dangling legs, the whole suggesting a 
turde or fossil glyptodon. Further on, upon the same side, we reach 
the Flower Garden, a space inclosed with a natural stalagmitic 
border and containing bulb-shaped stalagmites resembling vegetal 
forms, bunches of asparagus, cauliflower, cabbages, &c. — according 
to one's fancy. Their formation is due to a mingled process of decay 
and growth, solution and recrystallization. 

*Fine large crystals of quartz an inch or two in length are sometimes found 
projecting from the limestone ceiling. 



20 



THE LURAY CAVE. 



We now descend a stairway to the level of Muddy Lake. In doing 
so we see on the rounded face of the rock five parallel lines — scratches 
of a bear's paw, as our guide avers. We are in the Theatre ; along 
our left is the Gallery. Happily, Muddy Lake has been filled and a 
cement walk put down. From this point looking forward toward the 




Fish Market. 

Fish Market one sees splendid effects from the electric light, streaming 
through the natural arch which spans the Lake, and reflected, in tints 
of silver and gold, from the formations new and old disclosed by its rays. 
It recalls and amplifies the thought of the sage Ulysses, where, in 
Tennyson's poem, he speaks of — 

"An arch wherethrough 
Gleams that untravelled world whose margin fades 
Forever and forever when I move." 



THE LURAY CAVE. 21 

We pass on beneath the arch spanning the site of the Lake to the 
Fish Market, At the end of the cement walk we see hanging upon 
our left the fish in a row, black bass and silver perch done up in 
bunches — rock- fish, according to the terms of our guide's ancient 
joke. The semblance is perfect. We recognize their bluish backs, 
whitish bellies and forked tails, while, to increase the illusion, the 
trickling water gives them the moist glossy coating of a catch fresh 
from the sea.* 

Turning to the right and mounting a flight of steps, we are in the 
Elfin Ramble, a vast open plateau, estimated to be 500 feet in length 
by 300 in breadth. The ceiling is a horizontal stratum of the original 
blue limestone, from which the distance to the floor varies from one 
to sixteen feet, Beneath us is a bed of dry clay, the remains of a 
former stratum from which the carbonates have been removed, as 
already explained. The lime has been but partially removed, how- 
ever ; much is still left as a chalky, whitish, pulverulent mass crumb 
ling easily under the pressure of the fingers. The theory has been 
advanced that the clay here has been introduced by violent currents 
of water, flooding the cave and bringing in debris from the surface. 
But this is impossible, as the cave is near the summit of a hill. More- 
over, the absence of the flint and quartz so abundant on the surface 
above is conclusive against any theory of violent mechanical action. 
There has been no cataclysm. The processes by which the cave was 
formed are all going on still at the present time. 

We see beyond the plateau another electric light chasing the 
shadows from our path. We make it our objective point, and going 
straight across Elfin Ramble we reach Pluto's Chasm, the rift through 
which the god is supposed to have borne Proserpine to the under- 
world. It yawns at our feet in a startling way, attaining a depth of 
seventy-five feet and a length of five hundred. Facing us is a wall of 
glistening stalactites. At the bottom of the Chasm, some distance to 
our left, is the Spectre, a tall, white, fluted stalactite bedecked, about 
its upper part with a fringe of snowy draperies. It is not difficult to 
see in it a meditative ghost, muffled in white, like the traditional 
spectre of the drama. In the same quarter, but far away, we dimly 
perceive Proserpine's Column, of which more by and by. In walking 



* " One has no difficulty," says the Smiths'^nian Report, " about the identifi- 
cation of the species of bass, perch, shad, mackerel, etc., some being gray all oyer, 
others having black backs and white bellies." 



22 THE LURAY CAVE. 

toward it along the chasm we come upon the Mirror Lake, a small 
pool whose calm clear waters are almost hid by a superficial growth 
of stone. Owing to the absence of animalcular life all the waters ot 
the cave are limpid and bright, though containing much lime 
carbonate in solution. 

Returning now along the dizzy edge of the Chasm toward its other 
extremity we come, first, to a flight of steps inviting us to descend 
afterward, and further on, to the Balcony. Descending we find 
in Hovey's Hall* some admirable formations, among which may be 
mentioned a cluster of branching corals, resonant draperies, 
called the " Swords of the Titans," and a group of statuary — Hagar 
gazing pensively at her famished child Ishmael Returning to the 
Balcony, we find it to be a space enclosed by a cluster of columns 
overlooking the Chasm. It contains some stalactitic draperies which, 
for beauty of coloring, translucency and symmetrical folding, are with 
difficulty excelled by anything else of the kind in the Cave. '' They 
are sixteen alabaster scarfs, side by side, of exquisite color and 
texture. Three are snow-white ; thirteen like agate are striated with 
rich bands of every imaginable shade of brown, and all are translu- 
cent. The shape of each is that of one wing of a narrow lambrequin, 
one edge being straight, the other meeting it by an undulating curve. 
The stripes follow the curve in every detail. Down the edge of each 
piece of drapery trickles a tiny rill, glittering like silver in the lamp- 
light. This is the ever-plying shuttle that weaves the fairy fabric." 

The most curious, if not the prettiest formation in the Balcony is a 
small stone hand, with fingers distinct, growing out horizontally from 
one of the scarfs. What is so curious about it is not its flesh-like 
color, nor yet its resemblance to a cunning little baby hand, but the 
fact that its growth is horizontal and without support — violating thus 
the law of gravitation in a most puzzling manner. Such growths are 
rather abundant throughout the cave, but few are so pretty. Not 
only do these twig-like projections make out horizontally from per- 
pendicular surfaces, but they also incline upwards at all angles. Not 
unfrequently the twig, or helictite, grows directly upward, and that 
too in situations where stalagmitic growth is plainly impossible. 

Going back to the stair at the Fish Market we there turn to the 
right, and, after proceeding a few yards across Elfin Ramble, step 
aside from the main course to the right to examine the Crystal Spring. 

*Often called Pluto's Extension. 



THE LURAY CAVE. 



23 



It is so named from the bright crystals of Hme carbonate forming at 
its bottom and sides, and also, perhaps, from the sparkling quality of 
the water "clear as crystal " which fills it to the brim. It has lifted 
its bed several feet from the original floor and some fifteen inches 
above the present one, and is contained within walls of its own forma- 
tion — walls crystallized from its own limpid waters. A fringe of 
stalactites, reaching from the ceiling to the rim of the lake, incloses 
it on every side, as if to prevent intrusion. Yet few can resist the 
temptation to drink of the pellucid nectar. 




The Virgin Font. 

Near by, and connected with the Crystal Lake, are several others 
apt to be overlooked because almost concealed by a thin coating ol 
stone encrusting their surfaces. They are indeed but one lake ; a 
disturbance in one troubles the water of the others. Their crystal 
bottoms sparkle beautifully in the light of our lamps. 

Regaining the main route the guide now conducts us to that part ol 
Skeleton Gorge where lie imbedded in drip-stone, at the foot of an 



24 THE LURAY CAVE. 

Ugly precipice, the (real) bones of a man*— unhappy not to have 
possessed a copy of this book when he entered upon his explorations. 
Descending by a stairway we are brought face to face with the object 
ot our search— the skeleton. Only a few of the larger bones of the 
leg, part of the skull, and a few vertebrae, remain in sight ; and these 
are held firmly in the grip of the stone which has formed over the 
rest. There has been much dispute between the romantic and the 
practical over the sex of the unfortunate deceased, the former averring 
that she was an Indian maiden who, crossed in love, came here to find 
congenial gloom in which to indulge her reveries. Her neglected 
torch burning out, she got lost in the darkness and intricacies of the 
cave, and wandering about stumbled over the edge ot the precipice 
and perished. The place is cold, wet, dark and dismal, and eminently 
suited for the close of a tragedy. 

Competent anatomists, however, assert that the bones are those of 
a boy, or small man, probably an Indian. Near one of the large 
rooms the print of a foot encased in a moccasin has been found. At 
other points the remains of wolves, deer and bears are traced, and 
the tracks of rabbits, raccoons and rats are abundant. 

Leaving the skeleton we return to the Elfin Ramble plateau, and 
following the guide visit next Brand's Cascade and the Imperial 
Spring. The Cascade is of flowing snow-white stone, rendered glo- 
riously effulgent by the electric light suspended near. The Spring is 
a fine body of water richly enclosed in a forest of columns. It is 
arched above with myriads of stalactites reflected with most beautiful 
effect in the smooth waters of the Spring, until it is impossible to dis- 
tinguish the upward from the downward growths of pearly stone. 
Near at hand is the Ladies' Toilet Table, whose mysteries it is im- 
proper for ruder eyes to explore. 

Retracing our steps for a short distance to regain the main route 
we now make for Giants' Hall. Striking across the Ramble we reach 
a bridge over the upper end of Pluto's Chasm, and find ourselves 
hard by Proserpine's Column. Looking down the ravine we again 
catch sight of the distant Spectre. 

Further on, and aside from the main route, is an opening in the 
blue limestone, a rift not many feet wide or high, but rich in varied 



*Prof. Joseph Leidy of Philadelphia and Dr. Elmer R. Reynolds of the Smith- 
sonian Institution have both visited the skeleton imbedded in the rock and say — 
"There can be no question as to its being human." 



, THE LURAY CAVE. 25 

draperies and fine white stalactites. We clamber over blunt 
stalagmitic stumps to inspect the Grotto of Oberon, a space en- 
closed by white columns and containing a pellucid pool. Here 
is the new Bridal Chamber, and near by one sees the flattened 
stalactite's mode of growth illustrated by formations hanging 
from a ledge of stone. 

Passing beneath a low broad arch we have our attention called 
to a piece of drapery, a shawl,* perhaps, formed of translucent 
stone. It hangs m graceful folds, and when the guide holds his 
lamp behind it the transmitted light reveals beautiful red stripes 
that follow every curve of the winding border. Near this point, 
on the right, was found the impression of a moccasined foot. 

Giants' Hall. — We now emerge upon the side of a vast space 
embracing several large apartments to which the collective 
name Giants' Hall has been aptly given. The ceiling and 
farther side would be lost in the distance, but for the splendors 
of the electric lamp. Giant sentinel forms loom on every hand. 
Turning to the left, we advance and catch sight successively of 
Titania's Veil, a marvel of beauty, and the Snow Bank, the lat- 
ter a broad white stream of stone. Further on, but this time 
upon the right, we discover a most beautiful stalagmite, the 
famous Frozen Fountain, attracting every eye with the brilliancy 
of its silvery glow, which beggars description. The pure white 
drapery hanging over this charming object is scarcely less hand- 
some than the Fountain itself. The little lake near by is called 
Diana's Bath. 



*The " Tinted Shawl," whereby hangs a tale. Or an " excursion day" rot long 
since the guide noticed that two inches of this formation had been broken off. 
He detected the offender, who was fined by the local magistrate. A few weeks later 
on another excursion day it was noticed that the broken piece, which had been 
skilfully fastened in its place by fine wire, was broken off a second time. Sus- 
pecting his man, the guide clapped his hand on the pocket of the new offender, 
and found the piece, which was again the occasion of a fine. The fragment 
has been again put in place — it is hoped, to stay. 

The owners of the property with commendable sentiment have earnestly invited 
the co-operation of the public to protect the cave from defacement and mutila- 
tion. They have constantly sought to induce a proper recognition of the respect 
and awe that should be inspired by contemplating the wonderful productions of 
nature's workshop here visible. 



26 THE LURAY CAVE. 

The Saracen's Tent is upon our right. It is a large circular 
space enclosed by long yellow draperies depending from a ceil- 
ing some forty feet above the observer's head. From the out- 
side it is strikingly suggestive of an oriental pavilion. The 
Tent affords a fine view of all that part of upper Giants' Hall 
which goes under the name of The Cathedral, or Organ Room, 
and of part of the lower Hall. 

Let us enter this titanic tent. Below and stretching far away 
to the right is an immense chasm, high and broad, and remark- 
able for the great size of its formations. The lofty ceiling is 
scarred with the wounds of huge stalactites broken off by their 
own weight and fallen to the floor. Most of these have disap- 
peared, being disintegrated by the acid water about them. Two 
remain. One, the organ, a mass of dripstone with long sonor- 
ous stalactites still attached, upon which a tune may be played. 
The other is the Fallen Column, a fragment of its former self, 
but still a monster twelve feet in diameter by twenty in length, 
and of an age estimated by some scientists at millions of years. 
One who wishes to surrender himself to the emotions inspired 
by the place, will allow the rest of the company to precede, him, 
while he remains to keep solitary vigil. In solitude and silence, 
undistracted by reminders of the outer world, the mind acquires 
the power of seeing the invisible. The spirits of the under- 
world gain confidence to approach and whisper their incom- 
municable secret, and what we had supposed was the monotone 
of falling drops of water becomes the intelligible voice of the 
gnome who has shaped the fantastic world around us. The 
eye gains a keener sight. The imps and goblins who love to 
lurk in shadows start forth to view in grotesque shapes. 

The electric light, flaring and sputtering, as if impatient at 
being brought down from its skyey home to this subterranean 
world, here exhibits its remarkable power to bring out clearly 
distant objects. It heightens the contrasts of light and shade 
upon which cave scenery so much depends for its striking char- 
acter. Under its glow the whiter formations shine with the 
lustre of pearl, while the amber tints of the older and darker ones 



THE LURAY CAVE. 27 

are changed for the color of gold. The weird and splendid effects 
of the spectacular drama no longer seem exaggerated.* But 
epithets cease to describe. Language framed to the needs of the 
upper world fails us here, where faces, forms, and tints, as well as 
the emotions they suggest, are all strange to us. We realize at 
length that the true charm of the place is nameless. That it lies 
in no one of its qualities but in all — in its silence, its immensity, 
its mystery, its splendor, its beauty — in the effect of an entourage 
altogether novel. 

We leave the Tent to continue our exploration, and come 
upon the Fallen Column which seems to bar our way into the 
Cathedral. Inspecting the material of the Column we find some 
portions of its exterior at an advanced stage of decay. A pen- 
knife blade is easily thrust in to the handle, and our finger-nail 
abrades it. Thus large draperies are often found worn to tatters. 
Out of their material new formations are made, and the gor- 
geous furniture of the cave is always undergoing change and 
repair. The Fallen Column also affords facilities, for examining 
a fungus (mucor stalactitis) said to be peculiar to the Luray 
Cave. In its most common form it consists of a slender stem 
about one-eighth of an inch in length, bedecked at its projecting 
extremity with a bright globule of water, and having from one 
to three other such globules distributed along its length. Under 
the microscope each globule is seen to have for its nucleus a 
tiny bulb containing its spores. Slender filaments trail about 
the bulbs and hang in graceful curves to the ground. It is a 
beautiful object when seen fresh from its habitat. 

Passing beneath the Fallen Column and beyond the snow- 
white Angel's Wing, we approach the Organ, and rapping its 
pipes with a pencil find that they give out notes of several oc- 
taves. Further on, over a slight elevation, we enter the Throne 
Room. The Throne is a niche in the wall on the right. Here, 
too, is Chapman's Lake, so named from an enthusiastic visitor 
who advancing, head up, candle elevated, examining the ceiling, 



*One who has visited the cave when illuminated by candles finds on entering it 
again under the electric light that its beauty is increased ten-fold. 



28 



THE LURAY CAVE. 




V 

x: 
U 

< 
o 

oi 

O 

X 



THE LURAY CAVE. 29 

suvddenly plunged waist deep into this pool of icy water, ex- 
tinguishing at once both candle and enthusiasm. From this point 
has been opened the vvay to the wonderful region of Hades, with 
its beautiful waters, Lake Lethe, and Lake Lee but we shall defer 
our visit to it until toward the close of our explorations. 

Hades. — There is perhaps no more attractive region of this 
underworld than that portion of it, which, from its beautiful 
lakes brimming with limpid quiet waters suggestive of the calm 
of the world of spirits, has received the name of Hades. 
While it may be fairly considered the vestibule of a better 
world, the visitor will be reminded, however, by his guide that it 
is in close connection with Tartarus, to which at various points 
there are evident openings to be avoided by the wicked. 

Passing from the Throne Room into a narrow rift in the solid 
rock, after a number of bewildering turns and windings, we 
enter the labyrinthine mazes of Hades. The first object to 
attract our attention is Lake Lee.* It is the largest body of 
water in the cave and one of the prettiest. Calm, clear, still, it 
reflects in a wonderful manner the many stalactitic beauties that 
surround it. A beautiful white column rises from its edge to 
the ceiling. Within a few feet is the bed of an old lake, now 
empty and dry, whose sides terraced at different levels display 
every stage and incident of lake-growth. The curious tower- 
like stalagmites along its border, suggestive of Castles, have se- 
cured for the lake the name of the River Rhine. The visitor 
must not fail to see the Chinese Devotee. Adjacent to it and still 
more interesting is Lake Lethe, a body of water cont;iined with- 
in raised banks of its own construction, and containing within 
its waters many novel growths resembling mushrooms in stone, 
exceedingly curious to the student of cave history. It has justi- 
fied its name. A gentleman who, wandering here alone, took a 
drink of its limpid crystal, forgot his way out, and after many 
futile attempts to thread the mazes of Hades — each turn of which 
brought him back to Lake Lethe — was rescued by the guide 
after his candle had burned down to the last inch. 



*Better known as Broaddus Lake. 



30 



THE LURAY CAVE. 



There are numerous rooms opening out from Lake Lethe which 
are particularly rich in helictites, and in stalactites of queer 
shape. A matter of interest in this locality is an abyss to which 
no bottom has yet been found. Mr. A. J. Campbell was once 




Lake Lee (Hades). 

let down into it a distance of seventy-five feet, but without find- 
ing its lower limits. The visitor should observe caution in his 
movements, as he may be lost in the little-known windings 
of this part of the cave. The peculiar merit of Hades is its 
series of wonderful lakes, and the facilities it affords for observing 
the growth of formations submerged in water. 



THE LURAY CAVE. 31 

Retracing our steps to the lower end of the room containing 
the Organ, we find ourselves face to face with a perpendicular 
barrier of massive stalactites. Taking the opening next the wall 
we reach presently upon our left the Tower of Babel, a fanciful 
name for an exceedingly broad and massive stalagmite, whose 
surface, fluted with successive courses of minor stalactites, sug- 
gests the idea of its having some twenty-odd stories. 

We have now reached the top of a flight of steps descending 
into Giants' Hall proper. With the help of two electric lights 
we enjoy a magnificent view of a chasm which, lofty and wide, 
and flanked with massive formations of every kind, is beset with 
gigantic blocks of limestone fallen from the ceiling, and crowded 
with stalagmites which tower above our heads. Everything is 
of gigantic proportions. Folds of stone drapery, called The 
Chimes, forty feet long, vibrate for many minutes to the 
light touch of the guide. On our immediate right is Empress 
Column, a stalagmite rich in flutings and dark about its lower 
part, but growing white as it rises until its summit is clothed 
with indescribable beauty. It is perfectly white — luminous, one 
would say. Nothing could be better taken as the type of absolute 
purity. 

The Sultana Column, near by on the left, is of symmetrical 
shape but discolored by age. An adjacent column suggests an 
Indian Squaw, and another Chanticleer. A rugged mass of stone 
further on, exhibiting a " gaudy leonine beauty," is the Lion of 
Luray. Winding our way through a labyrinth of spires, mina- 
rets, formations infinite in number and kind, we come at length 
to the base of the Double Column* — two huge brown masses, 
the one a stalactite hanging about fifty feet from the ceiling to 
within a few feet of the floor; the other a stalagmite rising by 
its side nearly as far: both of immense size and symmetrical in 
shape. Within a few feet are a number of sonorous draperies 



*RecentIyPdedicated, by the Reading Society of Natural Sciences, under the 
name " Henry-Baird Column," to the late Prof. Joseph Henry, the first Secretary, 
and Prof. Spencer F. Baird, the present Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution 
at Washington. 



32 



THE LURAY CAVE. 




The Angels Harp (Cathedral). 



THE LURAY CAVE. 33 

of great length. These when gently struck by the guide with his 
finger give out notes of charming sweetness : 

" Like an Aeolian liarp that wakes 

No certain air, but overtakes 

Far thought with music that it makes." 

Proceeding along the plank walk through the Narrow Passage, 
we have on our right the Frozen Cascade, succeeded further on 
by the Chalcedony Cascade. Opposite the latter upon the left 
is Mahomet's Coffin, an immense boulder of limestone suspended 
in mid-air. 

The Ball Room. — We emerge at length into a large open 
sDace, nearly circular and magnificently furnished with all that is 
striking and attractive in cave scenery. Its size and shape jus- 
tify the name which has been given it. It is floored with plank 
and provided with benches. A bank of stone on one side sup- 
plies a support tor successive ranges of seats. Formerly on 
" Illumination Days," when some 5,000 candles were lighted 
throughout the Cave, the lads and lasses of the adjacent counties 
celebrated the event by assembling here for a dance. The Luray 
Band with their instruments provided the necessary music. As 
may be imagined, the effect was both striking and queer. The 
brilliant lights set off the Ball Room to its best advantage, and 
the music echoed loudly back and forth through Giants' Hall. 
This apartment, the lowest in the cave, is 260 feet beneath the 
surface. 

The objects of interest here are the Tombs of the Martyrs, the 
Vault, the Lady's Riding Whip, the Idol, the Conical Shot, and 
the fair maiden Cinderella. Two sets of rooms adjoin. The 
one contains the much admired Cascade Spring, a series of pools 
in tiers, the lower ones formed and fed by the outflow of those 
above, and all lined with calcite crystals. Prettily colored and 
sonorous draperies of great length, hang near by. Another set 
of rooms, including Collins' Grotto,* is reached by mounting 



* Named after Jerome J. Collins, one of the officers of the Jeannette, who spent 
ten days exploring the cave. 



34 



THE LURAY CAVE. 



Stairs opposite the entrance to the Ball Room. Collins' Grotto 
is rich in formations of rare and curious shapes, among which 
the Dragon is specially interesting. An attraction connected 




Corner of Ball Room. 

with it is the Snowball Spring. On our return from 
the Grotto we stop to examine the Bird's Nest, a cavity in the 
rock containing three beautiful white eggs — cave-pearls — formed 



THE LURAY CAVE. 



35 




Andrew J. Campbell.* 

and forming from drops of lime-laden water falling from the 
ceiling. Opposite to Cascade Spring is an opening leading up 
to Pluto's Chasm. 

Campbell's Hall. — Returning to the entrance to the Ball 
Room, we plunge into a dark ravine upon the right and mount- 
ing two long flights of steps find ourselves on the second story 
of the Cave, and at the opening into Campbell's Hall. It is an 
apartment of irregular shape, about 150 feet in diameter and 
thirty-five feet high, remarkable for the variety of color, and fine 
state of preservation of its formations. Some are of pearly 
whiteness, others are red, bright yellow, gray, bluish and jetty 
black. It is worthy of remark that the Cascade Spring derives 
its waters from this place. 



*The first person to enter the Cave. He and his nephew, William B. Campbell, 
attend the visitor as guides. 



36 THE LURAY CAVE. 

Specially to be noted is the Fountain in Tiers. Imagine upon 
the summit of a bank of stone a large shallow basin filled with 
pellucid water. Its outflow is received into six other smaller 
basins arranged in graceful curves along the slope below. The 
sides and bottoms of all are covered with calcite crystals of 
an amber color. In the larger basin stands a brown column, 
three feet high, whose base is beautifully broadened with a 
wreath of crystals as far up as the water reaches. The Scale 
Column, or Mermaid, is sheathed in crystals resembling scales. 
Campbell's Hall answers to our highest conception of the orna- 
mental in cave scenery, since here to a remarkable degree the 
formations retain their original beauty. 

On making our exit we discover over our heads two folds of 
stonycloth, of light color, translucent and striped finely with 
opaque bands of snowy whiteness — the prettiest in the cave. 

The Return. — We make our way back to the Double 
Column, and thence, turning to the left, up a flight of steps into 
the Hall of Eblis, a wide apartment having vistas opening out in 
many directions. Here are the Comet Column, the Camel's 
Head, the Handkerchief, and the Wet Blanket. Here, too, is 
the former Bridal Chamber, which has been consecrated by an 
actual marriage. The Hollow Column not far distant, 
is a huge stalactite through the axis of which a streamlet of fresh 
surface water has eaten its way from end to end, opening up a 
shaft by which we may ascend forty feet into a gallery over the 
rooms we have been exploring. 

Proserpine's Column is now our objective point. But before 
we go we find our way to the platform beneath the electric light 
to get another view of the Empress Column. It is truly superb, 
and its name is but in keeping with its air of imperial loveli- 
ness. 

We have seen enough for one day. We are exhausted men- 
tally by the multitude of our new impressions, and by the lively 
emotions to which they have given rise. Deferring the wonders 
yet remaining to another time we hurry back towards Entrance 
Hall, and mounting the stairway into the purplish light of day 
realize at length that we have enormous appetites and are perhaps 



THE LURAY CAVE. 37 

a trifle tired by hours of cave travel. We bethink us of the 
gastronomic resources of the Lurav Inn.* 




Wet Blanket. 

From the door of the Cave House a fine view of the beautiful 
Luray Valley is obtained. Fronting us towards the east is the 
Blue Ridge, blue as the heavens, with its various out-lying spurs, 
one of which partly conceals Thornton's Gap. On the right in 



*Kept by Geo. K. MulUn of the St. Cloud Hotel, Philadelphia. 



38 THE LURAY CAVE. 

charming profile the same mountain curves towards us, folding 
in its embrace the hills and dales, broad meadows, orchards and 
fertile fields of the upper Hawk's Bill. Mary's Rock is a famous 
land-mark, in full view. On our left, toward Front Royal, the 
azure-tinted peaks of the Massanutton are seen to approach the 
line of the Blue Ridge. Famous for many bloody combats 
during the war, the scene is now, however, one of peace, and 
recalls the Laureate's vision — 

The island valley of Avilion ; 

Where falls not hail, or rain, or any snow. 

Nor ever wind blows loudly ; but it lies 

Deep-meadowed, happy, fair with orchard lawns, 

And bowery hollows crown'd with summer sea. 



OTHER PARTS OF THE CAVE. 

" Silence is vocal if we listen well." 

Large areas, embracing some of the finest parts of the cave, 
are not yet opened to the public. The route described in my 
last chapter takes in those localities which were first made easy 
of access to the general visitor. There remain for the un- 
daunted explorer certain regions for which special preparation is 
necessary : miles* of clambering up the sides of chasms, along 
slippery ledges, swinging from pillar to pillar at great risk of 
losing one's hold on treacherous stalagmites — to give a name to 
some as yet unchristened gulch ; ridges to straddle with yawn- 
ing gulfs on either side, and embarrasing sharp-pointed stalac- 
tites over-head ; descents to be made, with labor and peril, by 
the help of decaying draperies, to reach floors deep with " boot- 
jack mud," or forming, perhaps, a thin crust over some bottom- 
less pit; crawling to be done through passages too small for 
one's person, in mingled mud and water, — such are the toils of 



*To visit all the rooms now open in the cave requires a journey of over three 
miles. The entire extent is reckoned at something less than five miles. 



THE LURAY CAVE. 



39 




William Ix Campbell. 



the explorer. He is beguiled to his task, however, by the novel 
beauties and terrors which present themselves at every turn. 
A pleasant excitement takes possession of him, and labor and 
lapse of time are forgotten. 

Three routes requiring several hours each remain : — Stebbins' 
Avenue, Stonewall Avenue, and to the Round Room, or 
Erebus. 

Stebbins' Avenue. — Turning to the left from the Entrance 
Hall, we enter Stebbins' Avenue so called from the name of one 
of the gentlemen to whom the discovery of the cave is due. It 
is a series of spaces of low pitch and irregular shape opening 
one into another ; all with floors more or less dry because the 
water passes away by the lower level of the rooms which are 
found to exist beneath. The avenue presently divides into two, 
of which the right one leads to Crystal Lake, the left to Pisa 
and the rooms beyond. 



40 THE LURAY CAVE. 

We recognize first the banded stalagmite called Pyramid of 
Cakes. It is surmounted by the Pine Apple. Near by is a bank 
of stone having a variety of colors, but most remarkable for a 
jetty black, supposed to be due to manganese dioxide. Near 
this is the Chinese Idol on its pedestal of stone. This part of 
our way rings beneath our tread with a hollow sound, and the 
guide removes a slab which conceals the entrance to a region 
beneath known as Tartarus. 

The Blacksmith's Shop with its fire-place and two stalagmitic 
anvils comes next. In an adjoining room is the Cannon Ball, a 
24-pounder resting at the bottom of a limpid pool. Further on 
is the Grape Spring encompassed with grapes, or botryoids, of 
all shades from black to whtte, small and pretty. A mossy 
growth of calcite lines the bottom of the Spring. Upon the 
right we enter a recently discovered room 150 feet long, 50 feet 
broad, and 12 feet high. It is called Dr. Hawes' Room, 
in honor of Dr. Geo. W. Hawes, of the National Museum at 
Washington. Crystal Lake is forty feet long by eight deep. 
We shall not venture on the narrow plank upon which the 
guide would tempt us to cross. We turn back, and near the 
Cannon Ball enter the narrow opening leading to Pisa. After 
crawling on our hands and knees for some distance we reach a 
large open space, the bottom of which is the bed of a lake. Its 
level is sunken about five feet — its bottom having fallen out, so 
to speak. Its sinking seems to have been expedited by the 
weight of an immense fluted stalactite some twenty-five feet 
high by twelve in diameter, which has broken from the ceiling, 
crushed the floor, and brought down with it many of the adja- 
cent columns. It is a veritable Leaning Tower. Beyond are 
Jacob's Well and the curious Bayonet Well, which have for their 
bottom the new level to which the Leaning Tower has fallen. 
The Bayonet is a perpendicular strip of drapery rising from the 
edge of the Well, having been left behind at the sinking of the 
stalagmite to which it was attached. There are many fine rooms 
in this quarter. The locality is specially rich in helictites. the 
curious lateral and upward growths alluded to before. They 



THE LURAY CAVE. 



41 



writhe upon the surface of their support like worms, in compH- 
cated clusters, perfectly regardless of the law of gravitation. 

Stonewall Avenue is a continua- 
tion of Entrance Avenue. Starting 
from the Skeleton we mount a stairway 
and upon the higher level find upon 
our left a room called Paradise, con- 
taining a pavilion ornamented with 
delicate lattice work of snow-white 
stone. It is called the Gnome's 
Pavilion. Further on upon the right 
we enter a passage conducting us into 
an apartment which from its connect- 
ing with the Imperial Spring is known 
as the Empress' Chamber. The 
splendid view under the electric light 
from this room across the Imperial 
Spring with its myriad of encompass- 
ing columns, and beyond to the 
rugged features of Stonewall Avenue, 
must not be missed. Returnmg to the 
main route, we rest for a moment 
to inspect the trailing tufts of 
a white, furry fungus of great beauty, 
hanging here, as elsewhere in the cave, 
STALACTITES & HELiCTiTES. from the plank of which the stairways 

and platforms are constructed. It 
doubtless belongs to the upper world, being brought in with the 
plank, but as it seems to find here the environment most 
favorable to its growth it should be christened Cave Ermine. 
At a distance its pendent masses are scarcely to be distinguished 
from stalactites. 

Continuing our explorations we come next to the Twins, three 
lakes of considerable depth encompassed by a wild forest of col- 
umnar stone. The clustering together of many stalactitic pillars 
forcibly recalls the multiplex columns of which the mediaeval 
artist was so fond, making it easy to believe that the Gothic 




42 THE LURAY CAVE. 

architect derived his idea from the growths of caves rather than 
those of the forest. 

Beyond the lakes turning off to the right we pass beneath the 
Canopy, a circular rock jutting from the wall ; bare as to its flat 
under surface, but ornamented about its circumference with a 
fringe of drapery. Going further we enter the Engine Room, 
containing the Locomotive and curious helictites of unusual size 
resembling potatoes. The formations here are of a strikingly 
eccentric character. Turning back to the main route we con- 
tinue for some distance until we reach the point at which the 
guide tells us it is proposed to open a new exit from the cave to 
the outer world. Near Dr. Miller's Room* we find large 
masses of calcite broken away with dynaniite cartridges in an 
effort to create a wider opening. Some of the huge blocks thus 
dislodged are remarkable for fineness of texture. "On being 
cut into slabs and polished, they are quite equal to the celebrated 
Mexican onyx, from which they differ mainly in vividness of 
color." Last of all we reach the entrance of a large dome-shaped 
apartment to which the appropriate name of Chaos has been 
given. 

Erebus. — Clambering over a huge pile of ruins in Giants' 
Hall, and mounting to a considerable height by means of a 
ladder, we enter upon the route to Erebus. On our way we find 
many curious formations to admire. Among these may be men- 
tioned The Toys, a cluster of upward and lateral helictitic growths 
gathered about the capital of a stalactitic column. Turning 
about we find the way from this point to Erebus arduous and 
difficult. It grows smaller and smaller until we must needs 
creep, at full length, some twenty feet through a narrow, wet, 
and muddy passage, which is but a crack in the blue limestone. 
It is impossible to avoid the stalactites besetting the way, and 
the dripping water fills the eyes with the tears appropriate to so 
uncomfortable a situation. Our clothing is reduced to a miser- 
able plight. 



*Named after the late Dr. Miller of Luray, a great admirer of the Cave. 



THE LURAY CAVE. 43 

We are rewarded upon our emergence into Crystal 
Room by the discovery of numerous hexagonal crystals 
transparent, of large size, and beautiful. They project from the 
ceiling, in clusters commonly, and are found only where the 
ceiling is the original blue limestone, within which, in cavities, 
they seem to have been formed at some remote period. They 
are two, three and four inches in length, and from one to 
twelve-sixteenths of an inch in thickness. 

We rest at last in Erebus, a room large, dark and dismal, 
having the shape of the figure 8. At the point corresponding 
with the middle of the figure, a large and symmetrical column 
of brownish-white stone rises from floor to ceiling, a distance of 
about seventy feet. It is the only column of any size in the 
room. Along the side runs a sort of gallery containing fine 
specimens illustrating the processes of "vegetal growth." Entering 
this gallery we find it filled with decaying forms, and peering 
thence into the central abyss — 

The dank tarn of Auber 
The ghoul-haunted woodland of Weir 

of Poe's fancy — we see lying there many objects whose shape is 
undistinguishable in the darkness. 



CONCLUSION. 

It is a task of recognized difficulty to describe the indescri- 
able. This diflficulty is enhanced, if possible, in the case of 
cave scenery by the fact that the impressions it leaves upon the 
mind of the beholder differ not so much in degree as in kind 
from those of his past experience. A new order of sensations, 
ideas and emotions demands, of course, a new vocabulary. No 
straining or expansion of a terminology derived from the upper 
world will enable it to describe adequately the wonderful phe- 
nomena presented in the realm of Stalacta. The visitor who 
attempts description must content himself therefore with seeking 



44 



THE LURAY CAVE. 



to impart his enthusiasm, without hoping to trace fully its 
causes. This only will he profess to understand clearly — that 
he has enjoyed the rare felicity of experiencing an altogether 
novel sensation. 

The Persian monarch's desire — a new pleasure — is secured at 
length to the world in the Luray Cave. 




CUEIOUS STALACTITE GROWTH. 



The fungus here represented is 
described fully on page 27. The 
specimens from which the cut was 
made were unfortunately old, dry, 
and somewhat withered. 

The cut on the preceding page 
represents the conical shot, found 
in the Ball Room. It is remarka- 
ble as combining in one formation 
three distinct types — the helictite 
supporting a mass of calcite which 
is, above, a stalagmite, and ends 
below in a stalactite. 













MUCOR STALACTITIS.-FEOM LTIEAY CAVE 



VERDICTS OF CRITICS. 



" LURAY Caverns may be safely counted among the chief wonders of the world." 
— Scientific American. 

" The wonders and beauty of the Luray Cave have not been exaggerated. 
* * As an object of interest, it ranks to Niagara Falls and is destined to 
almost equal popularity. — The Washington {D. C.) Post. 

" The whole is a mas? of georgeous splendor, with probably no equal in 
America, if in the world." — New York Herald. 

"The Philadelphia In/juirer s,-^Qzks of "folds of lovely drapery ornamented with 
tracery like fine lace-work and hung with edgings of heavy silver bullion.' 

" Nothing so vast, so varied, so magnificent, exists in any other cavern known 
to man." — Harper's Weekly. 

LETTER FROM " PORTE CRAYON." 

Charlestown, Jefferson County, West Virginia. ) 
November 2ist, i88r. J 

My Dear Sir: 

In my earlier days I explored a number of notable caverns, including 
the " Mammoth Cave " in Kentucky, and " Weyers " in Virginia, and have since 
that time confined my observations to views above ground, under the belief that 
nature had no more subterranean surprises nor enchantments in store for me. 

I must confess, however, that my recent visit to the cave at Euray has been a 
new revelation, surpassing as that does all I had previously seen, in the richness 
and profussion of its ornamentation and its weird and dramatic effects, especially 
when illuminated by the electric lights recently introduced. 

These effects are beyond the reach of descriptive art, and must be seen to be 
fully understood and appreciated. 

I am very truly yours, 

(Signed) DAVID H STROTHER. 



An Architect might get an inspiration from the arches and domes and columns 
which nature so lavishly displays in this subterranean palace. — Jturnal and 
Courier, New Haven, Conn. 

The Neni York Times, speaking of the introduction of the electric light into 
the caverns says, " The effect is grand beyond description, the brilliancy of the light 
being greatly increased by the reflections from the crystallized formations and the 
depth of the lakes." 



48 THE LURAY CAVE. 

Forney's Progress thinks " no comparison need be entered upon as between the 
Mammoth Cave and these perfected grottoes, — Luray's are incomparably superior 
in all that goes to make brilliancy, beauty, and splendor." 

The Baltimo7-e Sun, says of the Empress Column. Its glittering head rises 
thirty feet above us, and its cream tinted surface dashed with the painted sus- 
picion of pink, is covered with delicate lace-like tracery deftly carved by Nature's 
hand — seen in some lights the body of the column appears to be of a delicate rose 
tint faintly gleaming through sheeny folds of creamy lace. 

BiSHOr Keane of Virginia, writes: " Whoever has not visited such a cavern 
remains in ignorance of one of the most beautiful departments of Nature's won- 
ders ; and whoever has not examined this wild handiwork of Nature, with the aid 
of the electric light, has but half an idea of its real magnificance and beauty." 

The infinite inventiveness of chance. — Afield and Afloat. 

In striving to give a glimpse of this fairy haunted realms, exaggeration seems 
impossible, and cave description would bemean the subject. — National Republic, 
Washington, D. C. 

"i^-HY. Philadelphia Ledger ih\nks " in the matter of variety as well as beauty, 
the Luray Cave can hardly be excelled. * * Although smaller than the 
Mammoth Cave, Luray is pronounced by men who have seen both more interest- 
ing and beautiful." 

" The grandest of American caverns." — Frank Leslie's Illustrated Weekly. 

Extract from a letter from the Secretary of the American Institute of Mining 
Engineers, after a visit of over one hundred of the members to the cave. 

" I may safely say that never in the history of the Institute have we ever had an 
experience that can compare with our visit to Luray Cave. 

Accustomed as we are by profession to a subterranean life, we were neverthe- 
less unprepared to find such a "mine" of beauty as your cave disclosed." 

The Fish Market is one of the most natural and unique sights in the cavern. 
The illusion is so absolutely perfect that one almost expects them to "flop" and 
wriggle about if touched. 

No other cave in this country possesses such diversified features, and it can 
only be compared with the celebrated grotto of Adelsberg in Carniola. — The Even- 
ing Star, Washington, D. C. 

The Philadelphia Times says, " to see Luray Cave once is to want to see it again. 
The journey is so delightful, so ipeedy and so inexpensive that everybody who 
has a taste for the enjoyment of the wonderful and the magnificent ought to make 
the most of the opportunity offered." 

Luray Cave does not boast of the size of the Mammonth Cave of Kentucky. 
But if not so large, it is decidedly more full of variety and novelty. At every 
turn we were taken by surprise with things which we had not expected to see. — 
Christian Observer, Louisville, Ky. 



May 1st, Season of 1882. 



LURAY INN, 

PAGE COUNTY, VIRGINIA. 

This elegant and artistically appointed Hotel is now open, and contains every 
known appliance for the comfort and convenience of guests. 
Table supplied with the best from Ea.-tern markets. 




Excellent meals and lunches arc served ai the Excursion House Restaurant' 
close to the Shenandoah Valley Railroad Depot. 



ALL TRAINS STOP AT LURAY FOR MEALS. 



Please notify train conductors of meals desired or of 
intention to visit the Caverns. 



Passeng^ers are requested to report any incivility on 
part of employees. 

Geo. K. Mullin, 

(of St. Cloud Hotel, Philadelphia.) 

Proprietor. 



Shenandoah Valley Railroad. 

THE ONLY ROUTE 

TO THE 

CAVERNS OF LURAY. 

These marvellous Caverns arc near the town of Luray, 

ONTHELINE 

OF THE 

SHENANDOAH VALl.HY RAILROAD. 

From New York, Philadelphia. Pittsburgh and the North fake cars of Tennsyl- 
vani.i R. R., connecting with S. V. R. R. at Hager-tovvn. 

From Baliimore, take cars of Western Maryland R. R., connecting witli S. V. 
R. R. at Hagerstown. _ 

F^roni Washington take cars of Baltimore and Ohio R. R. connecting with S. V. 
R. R. at Shenandoah |unction. 

From Cincinnati and Richmond take cars of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway, 
connecting with S. V. R. R. at Waynesboro. 

From Norfolk. Lynchburg, New Orleans, Memphis and intermediate points, 
take the cars via. the Norfolk and Western R, R. connecting with S. V. R. R. at 
Roanoke. 

Ask for Tickets "via. Shenandoah Valley R. R." 
NATURAL BRIDGE. 

Passengers via the Shenandoah Valley R. R. bound for the Caverns of Luxayoi 
going North or SoutK over the road are allowed to 

STOP OVER 

to visit the Natural Bridge, the Caverns, or both. 

jro RO^n SURPASSES tue 
snEJ^.i.rno.iH r-.iELEj- r^iero^d for bejv- 

TIFVE ^Jrn ROM.lJ^TtC SCEJTERlTs 

JOSEPH H. SANDS, CHAS. P. HATCH, 

Superintendent, G. F. & P. A, 

Hagerstown, Md. Lynchburg, Va. 



NOBFOLE AND WESTERN R. R. 

THE ONLY ROUTE FROM THE 

SOUTH AND SOUTH-WEST 



-FOR THE— 



CAVERNS OF LURAY. 



—AND THE- 



Natural Bridge of Virginia. 

The N. 6^* W. R. R. l)eing the only road which will connect from the South 
with the 

Shenandoah Valley Railroad^ 

after the completion of the latter road to ROANOKE, VA* 

Passengers for the North from Norfolk, Lynchburg, Knoxville, Memphis, 
Atlanta, New Orleans, and intermediate cities will find the route via. the Nor- 
folk and Western R. R. and S. V. R. R., the 

BEST IN THE COUNTRY 

for comfort and beautiful scenery— and all through passengers going North or 
South over the S. V. R. R. will be allowed to 

STOP OVKR 

to visit the Natural Bridge, the Caverns, or both. 



As^ for Titt yia. N, & W. 1 1 k 1 1 1 1 



HENRY FINK, CHAS. P. HATCH, 

Gen'l Manager, G. F. & P. A. 

Lynchburg, Va Lynchburg, Va. 




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